NEW DELHI: The Central government has come out with explanation over denying permission for State minister Kadakampally Surendran to visit China.

“What happened in China was not a programme that was suitable for the cultural standards of India. Low-rank officials had taken part in the function. As per protocol, the minister is not supposed to hold talks with them. Such kinds of talks were not suitable for the country’s status and standard,” Union minister External Affairs Minister V K Singh said at a press conference here on Wednesday.

Minister Kadakampally Surendran was invited as the chairman of KITTS under the Kerala government. KITTS was considered as one of the 600 affiliated institutions.

“When India, a full-time member of UN WTO, sends a team under joint secretary to the Conference in China, making a minister sit on the side-lines in the gallery and attending the conference silently, is something not befitting the prestige of the country. If a minister is sent to a country without diplomatic powers and without opportunity to voice his opinion, it will only be sheer waste money,” he explained.